Archive for category: Idiosyncratic Celebrations

July 3, 2015
[raw]
I suggested some alternatives to the realtor who plants American flags on our lawns every 4th of July. [/raw]
When it comes to our little plot of suburban heaven, we are outliers. We couldn't care less about having a perfect lawn. No monthly weed treatments and I do all the mowing. Some years, to make its upkeep a little less mundane, I do creative mowing. The best thing you can say about our grass is it's green. And, if you squint, it looks lush and, well, even greener.
Every year Read more [...]

January 19, 2014
[raw]
The 2014 Rose Bowl Game[/raw]
I'm not a sports junky. In fact, I'm worse. I'm a fair-weather sports fan filed under the subcategory "College Sports/Only Schools I Went To." And that means just football and basketball. So, I follow two schools, both my alma maters: Michigan State, where I got my undergraduate degree and UCLA where I got my MFA. Oh, and as a fallback, I will sometimes follow the University of Maryland just because I live in Maryland (I may follow it more in the coming Read more [...]

October 31, 2010
I positioned us at the Rally for a good photo op of the Capitol.
At the last minute I decided to bring one of my Chamomile Tea Party posters to the Rally for Sanity here on the National Mall yesterday. So Friday afternoon I got it printed BIG. You might wonder why this wasn't on my radar weeks ago. After all, procrastination is not my usual style. Let's see, there's work, soccer games, work, grocery shopping, exhaustion, and work --well, you get the picture. The Chamomile Tea Party is my "side" Read more [...]

May 31, 2010
My anniversary gift, set to the time we were married. Click on image for larger view.
Yesterday was our seventeenth wedding anniversary. And while I wasn't expecting furniture, the traditional gift for this celebration, I definitely wasn't expecting this!
I woke up to Susie's loving warning: "Don't come out until I tell you!" I obeyed. And when she finally gave me the signal I made my way the kitchen. "I know you've been lusting over a special watch so I wanted to give you this to go towards it," Read more [...]

November 26, 2009
The view from our house. Click on image to enlarge.
Woke up this Thanksgiving to dense fog. After a little breakfast in the peace and quiet of the early morning I put my coat on over my PJs and walked a few feet out our front door to take this photograph. The last of the colorful autumn leaves was a great counterpoint to the atmospheric mist just above the forest path. To my Southern California friends who are expecting an 80°F holiday, eat your hearts out. This is what Thanksgiving is supposed Read more [...]

July 17, 2009
As I enter geezerhood my only consolation is that someday I'll look back and say "Ah to be 60 again!" To those of you who might discount those of the older persuasion remember the words of John Bradford: "There but for the grace of God goes John Bradford." There but for the grace of God go I. Some day you too will ask yourself "How did this happen?" It seems to happen with quiet determination.
So when do I get my senior discount? No, better yet, when do I get my own Wikipedia page?
Read more [...]